ReggaeEDM Interview #1: Kēvens - the artist who coined the genre.
REDM: Thanks for taking the time to speak with us, Kēvens. For starters, what is your history with the term ReggaeEDM?
Kēvens: Yeah, back in 1997, I was booked at the Zen Music Festival with my rock-reggae band, Le Coup. We had never performed at an EDM event before, and I welcomed the opportunity. When we finally made it onto that Zen stage, we did what we always do—entertain the rave and reggae audience, and everyone had a blast.
It all began at The Edge, a nightclub in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where I had a residency with my reggae band. I would play outside on the terrace, while inside they had DJs from all over spinning the latest rave sounds.
One of the top disc jockeys of the day was Icey, who had a big following. He would hit the decks well after midnight. The rave audience would come just a little before midnight to find my reggae audience bubbling—and they would merge.
1998 Zen Music Festival Flyer
One night, Jason Donovan, the owner of the Zen Festival, showed up to bring me my flyers, since he hadn’t had them ready earlier that day when I went to pick them up from his printing company. I’d print 5,000 flyers from him and John, his business partner, at least once a month. Promoters take note when a bandleader promotes hard.
When he got to The Edge and saw the crowd, he said, “Man, this is interesting. I was wondering why you’re always printing flyers. You have reggae and ravers for fans. Would these people follow you anywhere?”
“Why do you ask?” I replied. He said, “I have a festival in Central Florida and was wondering if this audience would drive up to see you. If yes, I’m thinking about having you and your band because I love your message, and the ravers obviously dig your vibe.”
“Yes, sir,” I told him. “They will follow me.”
The Zen show was off the chains. After performing with my band, Mr. Mendez—the guy who introduced me to Jason—came up and said, “Listen, the raver kids are getting a bit rowdy inside where Rabbit in the Moon is about to play. I need you to go on the mic and do your thing.”
“What do you mean, do my thing?” I asked.
He said, “Yo, the police might shut us down.”
Mind you, at that time, I had no idea what a raver’s life was all about. No clue who Rabbit in the Moon or DJ Monk were.
So I went into the big tent, got on the microphone, and spoke to the audience about how the music is the reason we’re here—not to cause problems. We just want to dance. I told them, “Let’s raise our voices and chant: Positivity is a necessity.” That audience erupted with joy and chanted “Positivity is a necessity” so loudly the police heard us.
I spoke just a little more, and toward the end of my speech, DJ Monk dropped a drum and bass jungle track. I jumped on it and started to rap, and the audience screamed even louder.
When I tried to walk off stage, people thanked me and reached out to touch me. Their intensity was overwhelming.
That’s the night I realized I belong in the rave scene. I’d already been thinking about moving on from Le Coup, and that night confirmed it. I exited soon after.
A few months later, I joined DJ Monk and Rabbit at their 1997 "Hallucination Before Christmas" party as an MC. I met the BassBin Twins, and a new chapter of my EDM journey began.
The following year, I got busy. I put a new band together and started experimenting. I was already a big fan of Roni Size/Reprazent, LTJ Bukem, Goldie, and Photek. But those guys were pure EDM. I wanted to do something organic. Being a band’s man, a horn man, a musician. I wanted to expand my sound. And like The Gong said, “One thing about this music—it will go bigger and bigger.”
Ever since I heard those early jungle sounds with raga MC vibes while visiting the UK in ’94/’95, I was hooked. I could never get it out of my system.
After England, I joined forces with my first drum and bass producer, Leo Purvis a.k.a. LP, who helped guide me in the EDM world. From him, I learned the different jungle and drum and bass early patterns. When his Soul Pro crew held underground events, I would pop in unexpectedly, get on the mic, and jam.
I remember vividly one Saturday night: after my first set at The Edge, with a packed audience waiting for my second set, I rushed next door to a Soul Pro session just to vibe. It was a small café with maybe 50 people, and I was flying with fun.
I should have known then and there—I was a raver.
I kept trying to wrap my head around the idea of doing it live and didn’t know how to go about it.
Then, on March 8, 1998, live drum and bass pioneer Roni Size/Reprazent performed at the Cameo Theater during the Miami Winter Music Conference. The co-headliner was Rabbit in the Moon, and I was MCing for them.
Roni Size’s band Reprazent blew me away.
After watching their outrageous live drum and bass set, I realized where I needed to go in my reggae evolution. The possibilities were endless.
I got busy writing new songs, searching for drummers near and far who were familiar with electronic dance music—and I finally found one. Thanks to Renny, my bass player at the time, I was able to locate the right band members. Miami is filled with great players, and the mission was to perform this melange organically, live.
A few months later, in September of that same year, 1998, after performing for the second time at the Florida Zen Music Festival, a reporter who enjoyed my theatrical ensemble asked, “How would you describe your sound?”
“My musical concoction is ReggaeEDM,” I responded.
